Debt Pollution
In the language of economics, "debt pollution" causes the same kind of negative consequences for our children and grandchildren that air or water pollution causes.
As an economist, it is striking to me that there is little or no apparent interest on the part of the legions of young people captured by the rhetoric of environmentalism in the very same forces at work with respect to the national debt. If we have moral obligations to future generations to use our resources in ways that incorporate our children and grandchildren in our calculations, then we have such obligations with respect to both natural and financial resources.
Debt-financed green expenditures rob one set of resources from future generations in the name of trying to conserve other resources for them. Yet few environmentalists seem to see that contradiction and raise concerns about the debt.
If the environmental movement is really about improving the lives of generations to come and not just valuing nature more than humans, it should be just as vocal about the growth in the national debt and aware of its own contributing role to that growth as it is about the overuse of natural resources in the present day.
~Steve Horwitz in the Tampa Tribune
Thanks to Russ Harris.
Originally posted at Carpe Diem.
18 Comments:
Remember this Leap in U.S. debt hits taxpayers with 12% more red ink article?
Key federal obligations:
• Social Security. It will grow by 1 million to 2 million beneficiaries a year from 2008 through 2032, up from 500,000 a year in the 1990s, its actuaries say. Average benefit: $12,089 in 2008.
• Medicare. More than 1 million a year will enroll starting in 2011 when the first Baby Boomer turns 65. Average 2008 benefit: $11,018.
•Retirement programs. Congress has not set aside money to pay military and civil servant pensions or health care for retirees. These unfunded obligations have increased an average of $300 billion a year since 2003 and now stand at $5.3 trillion.
That's a bit weak.
Government finances can always be reset with a bit of short term pain.
Some types of pollution cannot.
"Government finances can always be reset with a bit of short term pain"...
Interesting comment bret but how do you define 'short term' in the face of trillions of dollars worth of debt?
"Some types of pollution cannot"...
Such as?
1,
Have to agree that the numbers are staggering almost unimaginable.
Obama is eerily reminiscent of Pierre Trudeau...charismatic, eloquent and equally economically challenged. Canada has been paying for the privilege of the Trudeau experience for years. At least, people are starting to question Obama at a relatively early stage in the game. Many in Canada never clued in.
Here is a an excellent commentary from the Washington Times on Debt Pollution entitled "Time For Budgetary Truth".
Hello QT:
I like your comment: "Obama is eerily reminiscent of Pierre Trudeau...charismatic, eloquent and equally economically challenged"...
Seems pretty much on the money if you'll pardon the poor pun...
"At least, people are starting to question Obama at a relatively early stage in the game"...
So it seems...
I googled 'Obama +"buyers remorse"' and was rather amazed at the numbers all things considered...
I chose one link only because of the statement in the link description: 'I have no sympathy for the unsolicited admission that they were duped'...
This is a statement that's concurs with my own opinion of how the internet has been a practical tool for information for at least ten years...
From Black & Right: Obama Buyer’s Remorse Growing
This is a quote from Andy Sutton who writes articles on Seeking Alpha. I am completely unqualified to give an opinion on this article but it is completely perpindicular to conventional thinking on U.S. Debt. "... since 1959, we have had almost no growth in GDP over the period, but we have gone in debt nearly eleven and a half trillion dollars to do it"!.
Debt pollution by presidential term since 1976.
From the Andy Sutton commentary pointed out by gettingrational: "How does borrowing nearly 50 cents of every dollar you spend inspire confidence? How can anyone with two bits of common sense to rub together take this as anything less than an overt devaluation of the Dollar? Yet his request was taken in a ‘business as usual’ manner by the media"...
Bingo!...
This commentary is excellent! Just excellent!
Thanks for that link gettingrational...
Didn't blogger used to have some sort of anti-spamware as part of the package?
Unfortunately, I have to delete all of the frequent spam comments manually.
Mark
"Unfortunately, I have to delete all of the frequent spam comments manually"...
Well bummer! That's got to be a drag...
Speaking of drags and debt someone sent me this bit from RealEstateRama (Ohio):
Nearly One in Two Mortgages in Ohio is Underwater or Close to it
The last three lines: Ohio joins California, Florida, New Jersey, Illinois and Arizona as the top states in the nation with the most number of properties either in or approaching negative equity position, according to the report.
“With negative equity so high, a sustainable loan modification makes sense for everyone, including the owners of the mortgage.” said Faith. “For lenders, homeowners and communities in Ohio, HB 3 would turn losing into winning.”
To read the full First America CoreLogic report, visit here http://www.cohhio.org/pdf/FACL.pdf...
1,
Interesting link re: negative equity in Ohio. If Ohio has zero default, there is little incentive for homeowners to continue to pay their mortgage.
Former U.S. Comptroller, David Walker puts some of the debt numbers in perspective.
“With negative equity so high, a sustainable loan modification makes sense for everyone, including the owners of the mortgage.” said Faith. “For lenders, homeowners and communities in Ohio, HB 3 would turn losing into winning.”
Stop the madness! No one helping me get out from under my Ski and Vegas expenses. What about my Audi 8 I'm underwater? Any help?
Stop rewarding spenders at the expense of savers! Funny how the capitalist all turn socialist on this government/taxpayer welfare program.
I live in Columbus Ohio. I paid my home off ten years ago instead of buying a big new home to keep up with the "Jones". Instead I saved my money in the bank and invested in America.
Now the "Jones" want a government/taxpayer bail-out 3% / 30 year fixed loan. But wait..they want more bail-outs. They want a guarantee return on their decision to purchase their new luxury mansion. If they payed $690,000 but its now valued at $635,000 they want anyone but them to eat the $55,000. And what do we do for the people who saved and invested? They earn 1/4% on their MMFs and get to only write off $3,000 per year of their $55,000 market losses (assuming its lost outside a retirement plan) Any market loss refunds for investors?
Please it's time to stop rewarding spenders at the expense of savers!
Out of pure self-interest, environmental groups should be concerned about national debt. What is the most important factor correlating with improved environments? Money. Where do environmental groups get most of their funding from? Upper middle-class donors.
If federal debt skyrockets, the nation becomes effectively poorer. The upper-middle-class gets slammed with huge taxes, and then donations to environmental groups will plummet. That doesn't bother me at all, since most environmentalists are camouflaged luddites who hate modern living. But, I don't want the economy destroyed just so I can see environmental groups fail.
1 asks: "how do you define 'short term' in the face of trillions of dollars worth of debt?"
In terms of pollution, several hundred years.
If the government reset the currency and repudiate all debt tomorrow, we'd recover within a few decades.
Fair enough Bret, but if they did such a move, what is your guess on the trend for environmental legislation in a country that economically shocked? More or less?
My money would be on lots of environmental laws being immediately scrapped. Where's the oil going to come from to replace the currently imported amounts? Can't use failed dollars to import, so hello offshore drilling and oil shale.
Environmental impact surveys? Not when you've got to rebuild manufacturing to replace the newly expensive Chinese imports.
What's happened in Russia after the collapse of the USSR? I doubt an improvement in environmental legislation or the environment.
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